2023 Solar Incentives Guide for Burlington, NC - Tax Credits & Rebates

What Solar Tax Credits, Incentives, and Rebates are Available in Burlington?

Source: https://www.dsireusa.org/

The term "solar incentives" covers a wide range of financial incentives designed to make installing and using solar panels more affordable. This is done to encourage people to switch to renewable energy. Different types of incentives, such as cash back, discounts or credit towards your monthly utility bill, may be available to you. Certain incentives may be provided via the North Carolina government, by your utility company or by county or municipality, while others are federal. Categories of solar incentives include:

• Tax Credits: Unlike tax deductions, tax credits reduce, dollar-for-dollar, the amount of income tax that you owe the government.
• Tax Exemptions: Sales tax exemptions are applied at the point of sale for your solar system. Property tax exemptions allow you to exclude the added value of your solar system when you're calculating how much property tax you need to pay.
• Solar Renewable Energy Certificate (SREC): SRECs and other performance-based incentives are generally handled at the state level. Once your solar panel system meets the qualification threshold (typically a small amount of energy production), you are eligible to receive SRECs that you can then sell to your utility company or other buyers. The money you receive is usually considered part of your taxable income.
• Rebates: A solar rebate is a partial refund given after you've purchased your solar panels. Rebates may be offered by your local utility company, your state or your county. The cash back that you get from the rebates is normally applied before calculating tax credits.
• Net Metering: Net metering becomes relevant once your solar system is up and running. If you have a net metering agreement with your Burlington utility company, it will subtract the value of the excess energy your solar system produces from your utility bill each month. In some locations, this credit is dollar-for-dollar, while in others you might get refunded a percentage of the value.

Federal Solar Incentives

Federal solar incentives are likely to be the first thing that comes to mind when you think about solar incentives. You might have heard of the Federal Solar Investment Tax Credit, or ITC. This incentive is a tax credit equal to a certain percentage of the money you spend on solar panels for your home.

The ITC was originally for 30% of the cost of installing a solar system, although it has fluctuated slightly over time between 26-30%. The installation date of your solar system will determine what percentage you qualify for. The cost of installation includes the panels themselves as well as the cost of labor, accessories and equipment. There is no maximum amount you can claim. The ITC applies to solar systems installed after January 1, 2006 on your primary or secondary residence. The residence must be in the United States and owned by you.

To know exactly how much money the ITC could save you, speak with your local Burlington solar panel installer.

The ITC has been renewed and expanded following the passage of the Inflation Reduction Act in August 2022. It's also now called the Clean Energy Credit. The new Clean Energy Credit now runs until 2035. American homeowners can now receive a 30% credit for solar systems installed between 2022 and 2032. This new credit will then be decreased by a few percentage points every year until the date of expiration. The program expansion also makes claiming credit for energy storage systems easier than ever before, beginning in 2023.

More information about the new Inflation Reduction Act can be found here. Your local Burlington solar panel installation experts can answer your questions and explain how the new Clean Energy Credit will apply to you.

State & Local Solar Incentives

Some solar incentives are often also offered at the local or state level. Similar to federal incentives, these might include rebates, tax credits and more. Certain incentives are ongoing, while others are offered for only a limited time. Your local incentives might come from the North Carolina government, or from your specific county or municipality.

Next Steps for Installing Solar in Burlington

There are many kinds of solar incentives: those offered by local utility companies, those offered by the federal government and those offered by the North Carolina government, to name a few. Solar energy use has grown tremendously in the last 15 years, partially thanks to these incentives. Speaking with your local Burlington solar panel installer is the right first step towards making sure you get all the incentives you qualify for when you switch to solar energy.